My Prince said he'd break my legs.

In the Flying Feather Palace

Liang Zhiyi naturally heard the commotion outside. She gripped her handkerchief tightly. Had this moment finally arrived?

Qinglan rushed in: "Liangyuan, Prince Chen has rebelled and sent three battalions of the Southern Army to besiege the Eastern Palace. We must leave quickly."

"Where to go?" Where could they go in this situation? I reckon the gates of Kyoto are already sealed off.

If the Crown Prince loses this battle, none of the people in the Eastern Palace will survive.

Qinglan took out some casual clothes for her to change into and explained, "We'll leave through the secret passage once the Crown Princess arrives."

A secret passage?

Liang Zhiyi looked at Qinglan: "The secret passage you mentioned is in the Flying Feather Palace?"

"Yes." Qinglan pulled her outside: "The secret passage is in the study, connecting to the mountain in the city. Consort, go to the study to wait for the Crown Princess. His Highness instructed that if the Crown Princess does not arrive, we should escort you away first."

Just as she reached the door, a guard rushed in: "Lady, we have to go now. The Southern army is attacking, and they seem to have a specific target, concentrating most of their forces this way."

"Where are the young prince and the young princess?" Pei Yue only has a few children, so you can imagine how important they are. Why is no one mentioning them?

"This morning, the Crown Princess took the young prince and the two princesses to Yiqiu Palace to attend to the sick prince. They should be with the Crown Princess now."

Liang Zhiyi gritted her teeth: "Send some people to meet up with the Crown Princess and the others. I'm retreating through the secret passage now, so I don't need that many people to protect me."

"But........"

"Go quickly." Liang Zhiyi interrupted the guard before he could finish speaking: "Since the Crown Prince has ordered the protection of the Crown Princess, if anything happens to the Crown Princess and the young prince, you will also be held responsible."

The leading guard didn't hesitate much, nor did he have time to hesitate, and led most of the guards away.

Listening to the sounds of fighting outside, Liang Zhiyi judged the distance of the rebel army and estimated that they were just outside the gates of Feiyu Palace.

After thinking for a moment, she went back to her room to get the dagger that Pei Yue had sent to her, and then, lifting her skirt, rushed towards the study.

With so many people, it's impossible for them all to follow her into the secret passage. Only a few people can protect her while the rest stay behind at Feiyu Palace to cover the rear.

Qinglan activated the mechanism, and the wall behind the desk slowly slid away, revealing a row of oil lamps that lit up the previously dark secret passage as if motion-sensor lights had been installed inside.

Liang Zhiyi stared blankly, momentarily disoriented, as if she had returned to the modern world.

"Liang Yuan."

A voice pulled her back to reality. She looked in the direction of the voice and realized that two men in black were standing beside her, bowing to her.

Her eyes widened in disbelief, and she pointed at them, speechless with anger: "You, you all..."

Aren't these the two hidden guards who were monitoring her at Liang Mansion before?

That damned Pei Yue locked her up in the Feiyu Palace and even sent hidden guards to watch over her. Anyone who didn't know better would think she was some kind of international criminal.

She had just sent most of the guards away to support the Crown Princess, intending to escape in the chaos, but now it seemed hopeless.

With such surveillance, she couldn't fly even if she had wings.

Before she could think any further, several blood-covered guards escorted the group of people as they rushed in, looking disheveled.

It was the Crown Princess, Consort An, Lady Dongfang, and the wet nurses holding the little prince and the little princess.

"Hurry up." Ning Jingqiu held a sword in one hand, blood dripping from it, clearly indicating that she had fought her way here.

Liang Zhiyi's understanding of this Crown Princess was refreshed once again; she actually knew martial arts.

Ning Jingqiu moved swiftly and decisively, and as she passed Liang Zhiyi, she grabbed her and pulled her into the secret passage.

"Why are there so many rebels, and why did they arrive so quickly?" Logically speaking, even if the rebels stormed the Eastern Palace, they wouldn't gather so many people here. They would definitely be searching everywhere to kill people and capture Pei Yue's women.

"Damn Consort Feng has betrayed us. She has led most of her troops here to capture us. The soldiers outside are all trained soldiers from the Southern Army. The guards that the Crown Prince left for you will not be able to hold out for long."

Ning Jingqiu ran while cursing, "Luckily you weren't hurt, otherwise that madman Crown Prince would have come after me again."

???

Just as Liang Zhiyi was about to ask something, she heard the wet nurse behind her cry out in pain, followed by the little princess's cries, and then a commotion.

She and Ning Jingqiu stopped and looked back. They saw a wet nurse lying on the ground with a sword piercing her chest. The little princess she was holding was covered in blood and sat on the ground crying.

Consort An stood to the side, trembling and unable to move. No matter how clever she was in vying for favor in the harem, she was still a woman raised in the deep palace and had never seen such a bloody scene.

Through the layers of guards protecting them, Liang Zhiyi saw the shadowy figures of men in black, about a dozen in total.

Judging from the situation, the sword must have been thrown over.

The rebels have pursued them into the secret passage.

With a dozen hidden guards and soldiers, it's no wonder that so many guards couldn't withstand them.

If the secret passage hadn't been narrow and the numerous guards hadn't formed a human wall that made them difficult to attack, they would have been captured long ago.

"Damn it, I really owe Pei Yue." Ning Jingqiu released her and turned to her, instructing, "You run first, don't look back. After you get out, run east down the mountain, there are Northern Army soldiers there to meet you."

With that, he drew his sword and charged back, shouting at the stunned others, "What are you standing there for? Protect the young prince and the princess! If anything happens to them, your entire family will be executed!"

After Ning Jingqiu's shout, the terrified wet nurses and maids snapped out of their daze and picked up the little princess from the ground, protecting Consort An and Consort Dongfang as they fled in a frantic escape.

Liang Zhiyi glared at the two hidden guards who stood motionless beside her and said, "What are you two doing following me in this situation? Hurry up and go help!"

"His Highness the Crown Prince instructed us to protect Consort Liang at all times."

The two hidden guards stood motionless, and they would not leave Liang Liangyuan's side unless absolutely necessary.

Hearing this, Liang Zhiyi was so angry that she gritted her teeth and kicked him.

"What's going on now? If we don't go and fight the enemy, once all the guards are dead, you'll be collecting our corpses."

Before the two hidden guards could react, Liang Zhiyi saw a soldier slash at Ning Jingqiu with his sword.

"careful."

Ning Jingqiu didn't have time to dodge and instinctively raised her sword to block. Perhaps because her wrist strength was weak, the sword in her hand was knocked to the ground by the soldier.

The instant the soldier slashed at Ning Jingqiu with his sword, the hidden guard fired a hidden weapon at the soldier.

However, it was too late. Ning Jingqiu was injured, and blood stained her clothes crimson.

Liang Zhiyi gritted her teeth and ran over to help Ning Jingqiu up, but unexpectedly another soldier swung his sword and stabbed at Ning Jingqiu from behind.

Liang Zhiyi reacted extremely quickly, pushing Ning Jingqiu away. She didn't know how she was so agile, dodging the sword that was thrust at her and raising her dagger to stab the soldier in the heart, killing him instantly.

For the first time, she realized how useful the dagger Pei Yue had given her was.

The guards stepped aside and surrounded Ning Jingqiu and Liang Zhiyi, forming a human barrier for them.

Liang Zhiyi didn't dare to delay at all, and helped Ning Jingqiu stagger as they ran deeper into the dark passage.

The soldiers and hidden guards sent by the Prince of Chen tried to catch up, but were entangled by the guards and the two hidden guards.

After creating some distance, Liang Zhiyi handed Ning Jingqiu to Qinglan for support, and casually pulled out a torch hanging on the wall and lit it with the help of the wall lamp.

It was nighttime, and the sky was already dark. The exit of the secret passage was on a mountain, and without a torch, it was impossible to move an inch.